Hike at Sunrise on Mt. Rainier Before Season Ends!

An easy 2 hour day trip from the Yakima Valley, or a great stop off Hwy 410 on your way to Yakima Valley Wine Country, Sunrise, on Mt. Rainer offers day hikes and an amazing viewpoint for watching the sun rise in the morning. At an elevation of 6,400 feet the trails meander above the tree line. Upon entering the National Forest about 2 miles off Hwy 410, you will receive maps of these trails. The Sunrise Visitor Center is 14 winding miles from the entrance of the park and is open daily from early July to early October. The Sunrise Day Lodge is open until late September and offers food service and a gift shop, but no overnight lodging. The trail from the Sunrise Visitor Center parking lot leads the hiker up a moderately steep hill, which you can return by or choose to do a 1 mile loop. As you continue toward Frozen Lake you will see three Burrows Mountains. Sunrise Visitor Center in Distance In the picture on the right three Burroughs are the three grey hills in front of Mt. Rainer. First Burroughs is the largest hill to the left. At Frozen Lake below you may choose to continue around to the lookout point, back to the Sunrise Visitor Center or or toward the 3 Burroughs. The view is spectacular hiking up to 1st Burroughs. This is a steep trail and you can choose to continue on to 3nd Burroughs. 3rd Burroughss has no trail and is more of a scramble up the hill. At the top is a spectacular Emmons Glacier overlook.
If you are planning on greeting the sun as it rises on Mt Rainer, the closest campground is the White River Campground at an elevation 4,400 Ft., and 112 sites. This campground is open until mid September and is located about 12 miles from Sunrise.

After your exhilarating hike proceed down the mountain on Hwy 410 toward Yakima and stop at Whistlin' Jack Lodge for breakfast or lunch. End your day in the Yakima Valley sipping wine at one of Washington premier wineries.

The Perfect Day Challenge

The "Perfect Day Challenge" in the Yakima Valley in September involves wild, whitewater action, wine tasting, a great dinner, and late night entertainment. This is only for those able to stand the fierce action and non-stop fun.



Start your day in the early morning on the Tieton River by running the Class III rapids. This is a trip of a lifetime, whitewater rafting down the river during the annual "Flip Flop!" You will experience the warmest white water rapids in the Pacific NW. The water has been warming up all summer in the Rimrock Lake to be released to irrigate the Yakima Valley only during the month of September. The morning trip down the river with Osprey Rafting is the way to go! As they say " It's 12 miles of foam eating fun." Your trip includes a great BBQ lunch afterward to view the pictures and share the experience!


Time for wine tasting! After your trip down the river, as you head back to Yakima, take the scenic route through orchards and farmland. Turn right at the first light in Naches(S. Naches Way) then right onto Naches Heights Road, follow to Ehler Road (map) to stop at The Tasting Room-Yakima . Four wineries offer tastings in a 100 year old farm house. Sit and relax on the porch, enjoy the wine, sunshine and view. Add a hike though the 85 acre vineyard down to the Cowiche Canyon Trail.

Time for a great dinner in downtown Yakima! The beautiful September weather and warm evenings are great for outside dining. Second Street Grill, Russillos, Santiogos all offer great downtown dining.
Locally owned restaurants offering fine dining are Gasperettis, Greystone, Apple Tree Grill, Zesta Cucina to name a few.

Live entertainment ends this perfect day! The SportsCenter Resturant & Lounge in Yakima offers live music on most weekend nights. The Seasons Performance Hall regularly features live music with an emphasis on Jazz. Downtown wineries, Gilbert Cellars, Tim's Tasting Room and Kana, offer wine tasting and live music most weekends.

The perfect day in the Yakima Valley - For those up for the challenge of extreme fun!


Any Questions?


Osprey- Rafting the Tieton
Blog-Whitewater Rafting The Flip Flop on the Tieton River
Yakima Valley Live Music listing

Updated 1.5.11

Archaelogical Dig for Ice Age Mammoth Bones! Update 8.7.10

The Yakima Valley is the site of the Wenas Creek Mammoth Project, a scientific dig for Ice Age Mammoth bones near Selah, Washington. Update 8.7.2010

Last day to view the dig was August 7,2010. Video below is explanation of findings and talk on the opportunity that was offered to those wanting to view the dig.




Visitors to the Museum of Culture & Environment, Dean Hall, on the CWU campus, can see some of the finds of the project. The exhibit is open to the public during campus building hours Monday-Friday 8am-5pm, and while the museum gallery is open Wednesday-Friday 2pm-6pm and Saturday 10am-3pm.



The Mammoth dig was conducted by Central Washington University, with methods from paleontology, archeology, and geography, to scientifically recover the bones and place them into an appropriate geological context. This interesting and perhaps once in a lifetime experience, was open for public tours, Tuesday through Saturday, July 13-August 7, 2010. On these tours one saw how the bones are found and excavated from the site. These guided tours occured every 30 minutes Tuesday-Saturday from 9-2 p.m. with the last one starts at 1:30. Bring water, sunscreen and sturdy shoes for walking as the site conditions are hot, dry and dusty.





There is an online web cam that will be available for viewing the dig in action. This dig is on private property and only accessible during the dates for the public tours.